Ivan Nikitich Beklemishev, nicknamed Bersen (" gooseberry") () (? - 1525) was one of the most prominent

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

s and statesmen during the reigns of Ivan III and Vasili III. During the reign of Ivan III, Beklemishev was sent on a number of important

diplomatic mission A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually denotes ...

s. In 1490, he acted as a personal bodyguard for German

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

Georg Delator, who had come to

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

at the request of Maximilian I. The latter was seeking the hand of Ivan III’s daughter and an

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against the Polish king. In 1492, Beklemishev was sent as an ambassador to Casimir IV. In 1502, he held negotiations with a Crimean khan

Meñli I Giray Meñli I GirayCrimean Tatar language, Crimean Tatar, Ottoman Turkish and (1445–1515) was thrice the List of Crimean khans, khan of the Crimean Khanate (1466, 1469–1475, 1478–1515) and the sixth son of Hacı I Giray. Biography Stru ...

. Ivan Beklemishev enjoyed a great amount of respect from Ivan III and had great influence over the royal court and Boyar Duma. A number of disgraced

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s, such as Vasili Mikhailovich Udaliy (Prince of Vereya), used to turn to Beklemishev for mediation and protection in their dealings with the grand prince. During the reign of Vasili III, Beklemishev began to fall into disgrace as a man known for his stern disposition and oppositionary opinions (e.g., he believed that the right to discuss the affairs of the state was the most essential prerogative of the boyardom). A major confrontation between Beklemishev and Vasili III took place after he had dared to criticize him on a number of issues, such as his intention to divorce Solomonia Saburova, and his unwillingness to consult with the Duma (as opposed to Ivan III) over the affairs of the state. At one point during a debate in the Duma, Vasili III told Beklemishev: "Get out of my sight, you smerd, I don’t need you anymore!". After this incident, Ivan Beklemishev was constrained to retire from the royal court and the affairs of the state. Later, he began to express his dissatisfaction with the

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’s policies in his discussions with Maximus the Greek, for which he would pay dearly. In 1525, Ivan Beklemishev was executed for his ties with Maximus the Greek. One of the Kremlin towers was named after Ivan Bersen-Beklemishev because his house had been adjacent to the tower from the Kremlin side.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bersen-Beklemishev, Ivan People from the Grand Principality of Moscow 16th-century Russian nobility Russian diplomats 1525 deaths Year of birth unknown